


"I Love You"

by centreoftheselights



Series: Rockpool 'Verse [3]
Category: Carmilla (Web Series), Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling, Steven Universe - Fandom
Genre: Canonical Character Death, Comfort, Depression, Drabble Collection, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Emotional Support, Expose, F/F, Gossip Columns, Guerilla Tactics, Inspired By Tumblr, Journalism, Memories, Minor Injuries, Nightmares, Promises, Publicity, Risk-taking, Self-Esteem Issues, Stress, Tumblr Prompt, book tour, journalistic ethics, raid, running late
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-10-27
Updated: 2015-10-31
Packaged: 2018-04-28 12:43:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 1,954
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5091197
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/centreoftheselights/pseuds/centreoftheselights
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Femslash drabbles inspired by a Tumblr post by p0ck3tf0x on One Hundred Ways to Say "I Love You".</p><p>1. You're Important Too - Amethyst/Peridot<br/>2. Sweet Dreams - Laura/Carmilla<br/>3. I Saved You A Seat - Ginny/Luna<br/>4. Cross My Heart and Hope to Die - Laura/Danny<br/>5. I Noticed - Ginny/Luna (Rockpool 'Verse)<br/>6. It Reminded Me of You - Pearl/Rose</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. You're Important Too (Amethyst/Peridot)

**Author's Note:**

> Inspired by [this post](http://centrumlumina.tumblr.com/post/131905513889/one-hundred-ways-to-say-i-love-you).

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prompted anonymously.

Amethyst doesn’t normally get many quiet moments. She tries to avoid them, really. But with everyone else running around trying to build this drill, there isn’t much she can do to help - and that means she winds up thinking too much.

“You don’t look happy.”

Peridot startles her. The green gem is carrying a heap of scrap metal nearly bigger than she is, but she pauses in the doorway when she sees Amethyst inside.

“What’s wrong?” she asks, making it sound like an accusation.

“Nothing,” Amethyst says, and she hates how her voice curls with self-pity. “It’s stupid.”

“That seems unlikely,” Peridot says. “Are you experiencing emotional distress? Should I fetch the others?”

“No!” Amethyst doesn’t mean to shout - but then, a lot of things happen that she doesn’t mean.

“Oh.” Peridot sounds uncertain. “Do you want to, uh… _talk_?”

Peridot starts to put down her load, and Amethyst turns away.

“It’s fine.”

But Peridot sits beside her anyway. “You don’t seem ‘fine’.”

“Okay, yeah, I’m upset.” Amethyst shrugs. “But it’s not important. Go and do your nerd thing so we can kick some cluster butt, okay?”

“Statistically speaking, our chances of defeating the cluster are unlikely to be significantly affected by a delay of the length of a typical conversation.”

Amethyst blinks at her. “You can’t be serious.”

“Not entirely,” Peridot answers, which startles a laugh out of her. “But what I mean to say is… **you’re important too**.”

Amethyst looks at the floor, not sure what to say, except “… thanks.”

Peridot smiles at her, and for a few moments, that’s enough.

“Uh… if we’re not going to talk, what do you want to do?”

Amethyst smiles. “Wanna build a fort out of all this junk?”


	2. Sweet Dreams (Laura/Carmilla)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prompted by lurknomoar.

Laura’s dream jerked her back to consciousness like a slap to the face. She screwed up her eyes tight, trying not to shake too hard, too scared of what might be watching her in the dark shadows that filled the dusty, book-strewn corner that was all the home she had left.

She was soaked in cold sweat, but she couldn’t remember what the nightmare had been this time. That was a small blessing at least, that or once hadn’t had to watch the blood flooding over her, the accusing eyes of a hundred dead girls staring at her, Danny bleeding out in her arms once more, the sound she had made when the knife sank into her back -

Laura choked back a sob and muffled it by shifting, curling herself tighter with her arms crossed over her chest. She couldn’t think about the past, not now - but in the library, there was nothing but past to think about. At least in the day she could search for a way out, try to coax Laf into talking, try to look Carmilla in the eye. But at night she was alone with her thoughts. Just an endless replay of every mistake she had ever made, and everyone person who had paid for them.

No wonder she couldn’t sleep.

“Laura?”

Carmilla’s voice in the darkness made her shiver, but she couldn’t answer. Laura felt like an exposed nerve, too vulnerable in the dark. Carmilla might be standing guard over her, but Laura would never forget again that she also held her own kind of danger. Not that it was Carmilla who was at fault there - no, this time, she didn’t trust herself.

Laura heard footsteps, but she lay still, pretending to sleep, pretending she was safe in her bed and in her own mind and no-one had ever died because of her.

From above her, she heard a sigh.

“ **Sweet dreams** , cupcake.”

Carmilla pulled the blanket over her, and walked away, leaving Laura alone with her thoughts once more.


	3. I Saved You A Seat (Ginny/Luna)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prompted by jack-the-giantkiller.

Ginny was late. She’d meant to leave practise early and arrive in plenty of time, but then practise had overrun (like it always did) and she lost track of time (like she always did) and now she was late. (Again.)

She’d flown across two counties at a speed which would have been illegal if the Ministry of Magic knew the phrase “speed limit” but was instead merely incredibly reckless. Her hair was in a mess when she arrived, and there was still a path of mud on her arm from the quidditch field, but she could probably get away with that. Quidditch players weren’t expected to be elegant, thank goodness, but if she failed to arrive on time then that fact would be splashed across every gossip column in the country tomorrow.

When she made it inside, Ginny realised three things in quick succession. The first was that she had, indeed, managed to arrive in time. The stage was still empty. She let out a sigh of relief.

That relief soon faded when she looked around and realised that the room was full. Standing room only. Which was fine, of course - good even, that so many people wanted to come. Only…

Third realisation: now that she was back on solid ground, that dull ache in her knee from where Morrigan had tackled her a bit too enthusiastically had become a sharp, stabbing pain. Ginny needed to sit down, preferably in the next five seconds. She definitely wasn’t going to be able to stand for the next half an hour.

For a desperate moment, Ginny considered watching the talk from broom-back - hers was just outside, after all. But that would mean that all eyes on her, which was exactly the opposite of what she wanted today. But how else could she -?

At just the right moment, a flash of blonde hair caught her eye. At the front of the room, Luna had turned, and was waving her over. Ginny hurried to join her.

“ **I saved you a seat** ,” Luna said. “I knew you’d want to be at the front. Are you alright? You’re white as a sheet.”

“I’m fine,” Ginny answered as she sat down. “It’s just a pulled muscle. It’ll be alright with a bit of rest and - _Thermeino._ ”

The warming spell rushed through the sore muscles, relieving the inflammation.

“If you’re sure.” Luna took her hand. “Aren’t you excited? I can’t wait to hear -”

She fell quiet quickly as Harry appeared on stage, and the quiet chatter in the room disappeared into hush.

“I’ve been asked here today to introduce a witch who needs no introduction, so I don’t really know why they asked me.” He caught Ginny’s eye and they shared a smile. “Here to read an excerpt from her new book -”

He gestured to the wings of the stage.

Ginny gave Luna’s hand one last squeeze, then let go to start clapping.

Hermione walked on stage, and the room erupted into cheers.


	4. Cross My Heart And Hope To Die (Laura/Danny)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prompted anonymously.

Guerilla supply raids to get food to last through the seige sounded… well, it sounded bad enough, but the reality of trying to sneak past the souped-up Zetas and Summers without incurring the wrath of the torch-wielding villagers seemed impossible.

“Right,” Danny said. “I’ll run right, create a distraction. You sneak past on the left and head for the cafeteria kitchens. Good luck.”

“I’ll see you back at the house,” Laura said.

“Right,” Danny said, with a voice too bitter for Laura to be comfortable with.

“Hey!” Laura touched her arm. “Come back in one piece, alright? We can’t do this without you.”

Danny smiled, and for once she didn’t look sad.

“I’ll always come back,” she said. “ **Cross my heart and hope to die**.”


	5. I Noticed (Ginny/Luna)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prompted anonymously.
> 
> This is set in my Rockpool 'Verse AU, but makes sense without any prior knowledge.

A minor apocalypse was happening.

“Just got another Floo from Hogsmeade -”

“That last owl was from the Minister -”

“Tell me that we’ve heard something from Diagon Alley,” Luna asked, but both her colleagues shook their heads.

“Hogsmeade is good news though,” said Cho. “Aberforth is going to stock us even if no-one else will.”

“And it doesn’t sound like the Minister’s got anything worth threatening us with…” Dennis didn’t sound quite so certain.

“Anything less than an injunction, and we go to print.” Luna set her jaw. “The public deserves to know the truth.”

There was a moment’s silence following that declaration, and Ginny coughed from the doorway. “I thought you might want coffee.”

Cho and Dennis took the offered mugs eagerly. Luna smiled at her, but it didn’t quite reach her eyes.

“If that’s been decided, mind if I borrow Luna for a quick walk?” Ginny suggested. “It sounds like it’s going to be a long night, and I’m sure these two can get by without you for a few minutes.”

“I don’t -” Luna said.

“Just go,” Cho interrupted her. “We’ll get on with the editing.”

“We’ll send Bly if we hear anything else,” Dennis agreed, nodding at the elf owl in the corner.

Luna frowned, but got to her feet. “I’ll be back soon.”

Ginny all but had to drag her out of the door.

“They’ll be fine,” she said as soon as they were out the front gate. “They can edit without you.”

“That’s not the problem,” Luna said quietly.

“I know it isn’t.” Ginny sighed. “You looked like you were about to scream. I thought a walk would help.”

Luna looked horrified. “Was -”

Ginny shook her head. “I’m sure they didn’t notice. They don’t know you like I do.”

Luna smiled shakily. “Good. I don’t want them to see me panicking.”

“ **I noticed**.” Ginny wrapped an arm around her. “I don’t know all the details of this exposé, but…”

“I can’t tell you much,” Luna said. “But - it’s big.” She swallowed heavily. “I’m worried we might go to jail. You know, if the wrong person decides…”

Luna said it lightly, but she was shaking. Ginny hugged her, tight.

“They’re not taking you without a fight,” she promised.

Luna shook her head. “It’s risky, publishing this sort of thing, but it would be worse to stay quiet.”

Ginny tried her best to smile. “We’ve been through worse.”

“We have,” Luna agreed. “And we’ll make it through this. I meant it - we’re _going_ to publish.”

Ginny laughed. “I look forward to reading about it in tomorrow’s Quibbler.”


	6. It Reminded Me of You (Pearl/Rose)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prompted anonymously.

Pearl had never shared Rose’s love of Earth’s plant life, but over the centuries, she had developed the habit of noticing particularly unusual samples. When she happened across a delicate stem of pink blossoms, tiny petals soft and feather-curled. Rose would have loved to see them.

Pearl had already plucked a sprig of the flowers before she remembered. She nearly let them fall between her fingers, but at the last moment she caught them again, and tucked them into the band of her skirt, before returning to the mission at hand.

Later, after the Crystal Gems - the three Crystal Gems - had returned to the temple, Pearl slipped away and found her way to the human town.

“Pearl?” Greg asked. “Is something wrong? Do you need help?”

“No, no,” Pearl said. “I just - would it be alright if I see... him?”

“Oh. Yeah, of course!” He let her inside, and there it was. Steven. So small and round, pink and fragile. He sat on a bed surrounded by bars of wood - simple restraints, Pearl supposed. When Greg followed her into the room, he reached up with chubby arms and made a high-pitched noise.

“Hey, little man!” Greg said, although Pearl knew Steven was not able to understand his words. “Remember your Auntie Pearl? She wanted to come say hi!”

Pearl tried to follow his lead, and smiled at Steven. “Yes, hello. I, uh, have something for you.”

She approached, crouching so that her eyes were level with his, and offered the flowers through the wooden slats. Steven reached out and grabbed them in a chubby hand, waving them above his head. He laughed.

Pearl smiled, and softly said: “ **It reminded me of you**.”


End file.
